_Sport_5-door_hatchback_01.jpg?width=2000)
Valuation · BMW · E87 · 2005-11
BMW 130i Sport
3.0L NA six · 195 kW / 315 Nm · 6sp manual · RWD
AVOIDRated within the under $30k band · 40 of 46 at this money
Research estimate
$17,500
Must gain each year to break even
+19.7%
The projection does not clear it, and nor does most of the library.
CarQuant score
35/100
Scored against the under $30k band, not the whole library
Evidence grade
Researched
No Australian transaction of any kind
$17,500
$10,824 lowhigh $23,247
Modelled estimate
No recorded Australian sale stands behind this figure. Treat the level as indicative and the structure as the analysis.
Measured across this library, a value with no Australian result behind it runs high about seven times in ten, by a median of ten per cent. Read this one as a ceiling rather than a midpoint.
Looking at a 130i for sale?
Put in the asking price and the odometer reading. You will see what this model should make at that reading.
Should make, typical example
$17,500
At about 160,000 km. Enter an asking price to compare.
No Australian sale stands behind this value, so treat the figure as indicative.
We will not sell a report on this car. The check above stays free.
Price history
Today $17,500 · modelled median at five years $18,402
Solid line: the value this library has carriedDashed from 2026: modelled · even money $14,416 to $20,950
The green band is the even-money range and the one to plan on: half of outcomes land inside it. The pale band behind it bounds eight in ten ($10,824 to $23,247). The path is this model's own: it starts along the momentum of its recorded history and bends toward its projected median as the horizon lengthens, so no two cars share a future curve.
The verdict
The numbers argue against it. Scores 35/100, ranking 40 of 46 in the under $30k band. Risk resilience is the strongest input, ownership economics the weakest.
Running it costs about $4,610 a year (26.3% of value), which is what the economics score measures. All in, including the projected value change, it is $4,710 a year.
The model's five year median is $18,402, a +5.2% move, with the tenth percentile at $10,824.
Value is research, not a measurement. Treat the level as indicative and the structure as the analysis.
Evidence
Researched0 recorded sales
Off its peak
at peak
Value band
wide
No external evidence. A modelled estimate whose structure is more useful than its level.
Scored against every recent Australian sale this library holds, half its values land within 11.2 per cent of the price paid and the rest miss by more, in either direction. Projections are therefore damped toward flat in proportion to how little is known, and the plausible band is never narrower than the error the model is known to make.
Short term (1-5 years)$4,710 a year all in, +5.2% median value move
Long term (10-15 years)Scarcity case already formed
Negotiate from$17,500
Recorded sales
No individual sales are logged for this vehicle.
Cars of this kind trade mainly through dealers and classifieds rather than auction houses, so no verified sale record exists to publish. The value is a modelled estimate.
Score breakdown
Against the under $30k band median
46 cars in band · ink tick marks the medianOwnership economics30% of total
14/100-21
Scarcity25% of total
30/100-11
Demand durability20% of total
46/100-10
Liquidity15% of total
57/100-2
Risk resilience10% of total
60/100+23
Sub-scores run 0-100 before weighting; the weighted total is 35/100. Medians are computed live from the 46 cars currently in the under $30k band, so this picture moves when the library does.
The working behind each factor: baseline and drivers ↓
Ownership economics30% weight
14/100Baseline80 pts
− 26.3% of value a year to run-66 pts
Sub-score (baseline plus drivers, clamped 0-100)14 pts
Scarcity25% weight
30/100Baseline10 pts
+ 525 registered in Australia in Australia+20 pts
Sub-score (baseline plus drivers, clamped 0-100)30 pts
Demand durability20% weight
46/100Baseline20 pts
+ Last NA straight six hatch+18 pts
+ Enthusiast recognition growing+8 pts
Sub-score (baseline plus drivers, clamped 0-100)46 pts
Liquidity15% weight
57/100Baseline5 pts
+ 58 days on market+34 pts
+ 310 sales a year+18 pts
Sub-score (baseline plus drivers, clamped 0-100)57 pts
Risk resilience10% weight
60/100Baseline90 pts
− N52 gasket and cooling costs-18 pts
− 14% volatility-12 pts
Sub-score (baseline plus drivers, clamped 0-100)60 pts
Model output, not advice or a valuation. Verify independently before acting.
What it costs to own · about 8,889 km a year
Annual cost of access, excl. fuel
$4,610a year
Share of value per year
26.3%
Scheduled servicing$1,15025%
Tyres, annualised$68015%
Registration and CTP$75016%
Insurance$78017%
Sinking fund (failure table)$1,25027%
All-in annualised (a different number)
Purchase (model value plus duty)$18,200
Running costs × 5 years$23,050
Median exit, net of selling cost$17,702
All-in annualised over 5 years$4,710/yr
Share of value per year26.9%
Cost of access is what the car costs to run. All-in annualised adds depreciation, duty and selling costs across a five year hold. They answer different questions and are labelled separately for that reason.
Break-even appreciation, 5 year hold
19.7%a year, only to get the money back
This library projects
+1.0%a year
The projection falls 18.7 points a year short of the hurdle. On these assumptions this car is a cost, not an asset, which can be an entirely rational thing to buy but should be bought knowing it.
Purchase$17,500
Stamp duty$700
Running costs x 5 years$23,050
Selling cost at exit, 4.0% of the salescales with price
Sale price needed at +5 years$42,969
Storage
Bought at
No forecast is used to compute the hurdle. It is the purchase, the duty, any premium and 5 years of running cost, grossed up for the cost of selling and spread back over the hold. The projection it is measured against is the weakest number in this product and is drawn that way in the chart above. Transport, finance and any restoration spend sit outside it.
Specification
Engine3.0L NA six
Power / torque195 kW / 315 Nm
0-100 km/h6.1 s
Transmission6sp manual
DriveRWD
Kerb weight1,450 kg
Built worldwide42,000
Delivered to Australia3,800
Effective AU survivors525
Australian sales / year310
Typical days on market58 days
Launch price$62,900
What moves the price on this model
Colour hierarchy
Le Mans Blue+4%
Alpine White+1%
Grey metallic-2%
Options
Manual over auto+6%
M Sport suspension and trim+2%
Sunroof delete+1%
Odometer sensitivity±0.9% per 10,000 km vs 160,000 km
Applied on top of these
Condition, history, originality, ownership, delivery and modification multipliers apply to every car in the library. They are applied automatically when an advertisement is analysed, and the schedule is set out once, on the analyser page.
Projected value in five years
Projected value at five years
$18,402
+5.2% on today
The model's figure. Today it is $17,500.
Even odds it lands between $14,416 and $20,950.
$10,824 lowhigh $23,247
The shaded range is even money and 45% wide; the outer figures bound eight outcomes in ten. Band width follows the evidence - a model with a tight measured record carries a tight band.
A weaker five year outlook than 52% of the library.
-26.6% weakest projected move in the librarystrongest +73.1%
Five-year cost of ownership
Value change alone: +$902 across five years.
Running costs over the same period: $23,050.
Duty and expected selling costs: $1,400.
Net cost of five years of ownership: $23,550, or $4,710 a year.
The projected value rise offsets part of the running cost. It does not make the car free to own.
The case for and against
The case for
An N52 straight six in a small RWD manual hatch. The recipe is extinct and the survivor count is already low.
The case against
BMW running costs at a $17,500 price point. Maintenance can exceed 15% of the car value in a bad year.
Known faults and risks
Risk 1Cooling system age
Risk 2Rocker cover and sump leaks
Risk 3Auto cars drag the market
Cooling system refresh$2,100
Valve cover gasket$950
Similar cars, and what they cost to run
What we will not sell you
We will not price a BMW 130i against an advertisement.
No Australian transaction stands behind this value. A spec-adjusted figure built on it would look precise and would not be, so the report is refused instead of sold with a caveat. That goes for this car and 87 others. Everything above is free and stays free.
Watch this model
Told when the next one is called.
One line of email when this desk publishes a call on a BMW 130i Sport, or records a new Australian sale of one. Nothing else, no schedule, and on a quiet model you may hear nothing for months, which is itself worth knowing about a car you are chasing.
Free. One address, one model, and no account.